Costa Rica (Lonely Planet, 9th Edition) - Matthew Firestone [87]
Hotel Cortéz Azul (2443-6145; Av 5 btwn Calles 2 & 4; dm US$10, d with/without bathroom US$30/25; ) The owner, Eduardo Rodríguez, is a local artist who displays his unique work throughout the property (don’t miss the mural of the Last Supper). The hotel has 10 homey, clean rooms with polished wood floors, a common area and two kitchens. Original art is available for purchase at reception.
Cala Inn B&B (2441-3219; www.hotelcalacr.com; Calle 2 btwn Avs 2 & 4; dm US$12, d with/without bathroom US$40/30, all incl breakfast; ) This small, modern eight-room spot overlooking the Parque Juan Santamaría has tidy parquet-floor rooms that are simple and spotless. The rooms vary in size and furnishings, from a dorm that sleeps four to a private room with king-sized bed. All share a kitchen and a cozy lounge with cable TV and foosball. Credit cards accepted.
Alajuela Backpackers Boutique Hostel & Hotel (2441-7149; www.alajuelabackpackers.com; cnr Av 4 & Calle 4; dm US$15, s/d standard US$30/45, s/d deluxe US$38/58, s/d junior ste US$48/68; ) This brand-new 21-room inn facing the Parque de los Niños is less a hostel than a full-blown hotel equipped with a smattering of dormitory rooms. An interior atrium is draped in plants and a 4th-floor beanbag lounge offers a prime opportunity to sip beers while watching the planes take off at the international airport in the distance. Dormitories are wonderfully uncluttered (only four people to a room) and each come with their own bathroom, while the private rooms are graceful, decorated in serene earth tones and equipped with cable TV and double-pane windows. More expensive ‘junior suites’ have plasma TV and comfy king-sized bed. Plus, there is wi-fi all over the hotel. Credit cards accepted.
AWAY FROM SAN JOSÉ
For most visitors to Costa Rica, a night in San José is practically obligatory at the beginning or end of every trip. But if you have a car, you can instead arrange to stay at one of the following country inns. All lie within a two-hour range of the international airport – and all have incredible mountain scenery.
Just outside of Alajuela, Trapp Family Lodge and Xandari Resort Hotel & Spa have pastoral settings – just 10 minutes away from the airport.
To the north, Poás Volcano Lodge has smashing volcano views, at a drive time of 45 minutes.
A 30-minute cruise along the Interamericana leads to Vista del Valle Plantation Inn, which serves up extravagant views of the Río Grande gorge and amazing tres leches (literally ‘three milk’) cake.
A sleek new B&B in San Ramón, Casa Amanecer is under an hour’s drive – as is the Villa Blanca Cloud Forest Hotel Spa in the nearby Los Ángeles Cloud Forest Adventure Park.
Outside of Heredia, Hotel Bougainvillea and the dreamy Finca Rosa Blanca will have you at less than 30 minutes from the airport check-in.
A little more than 90 minutes away, in the Valle de Orosi, Sanchirí Mirador and Orosi Lodge offer picturesque views of wild forest and coffee fincas.
Arilapa (2443-6941; www.arilapa.com; dm/s/d/tr incl breakfast US$17/30/35/45; ) Just outside of town, this lovely family home with bright rooms clad in terra-cotta tile floors can take you straight from the airport to nature. Set in an orange grove, it is run by Arnold and Ileana, who offer free airport pickups and tortilla-making lessons at the in-house bakery.
Pensión Alajuela (2443-1717; www.pensionalajuela.com; Av 9 btwn Calles Central & 2; d with shared bathroom US$24, d with/without air-con US$33/28; ) A dozen different rooms (some without windows) are simple, but clean and surround a pleasant garden terrace filled with plants. There’s a communal kitchen, wi-fi and laundry service. Credit cards accepted.
Hotel Pacandé (2443-8481; www.hotelpacande.com; Av 5 btwn Calles 2 & 4; s US$27-50, d US$28-50, tr US$45-60, all incl breakfast; ) This popular, locally run option is very clean throughout, offering 10 large rooms with wood furnishings, frilly toilets, folk-art touches and cable TV. Rooms come in a variety of configurations, with